Saturday, 22 October 2011

This latest body of work ‘Friends, Foes & Other Animals’ was inspired by her recent trip to Spain and features an array of characters and scenes drawn from her recent experiences.Set against backgrounds of the Gardens of Montjuic, the Majorcan coastline, Valencia and Toledo her muses are clad in sumptuous costumes acting out roles of both the bizarre and fantastic.one of Australia’s most popular narrative artists. Egan’s latest body of work

Egan’s protagonists for this series are Pepa and Christabel Blackman, plus an array of other friends and animals encountered on her journeys.Christabel’s penchant for exotic culinary delights renders her “The Mean Paella Queen”, while Pepa, depicted as a “Lolita”, encompasses all that is beautiful and innocent.Within these parameters, Egan explores themes of friendship, loss and our relationship with nature, resulting in paintings that are both humorous and at times sad. In the painting “Harvest”, Pepa is shown wearing a cornucopia gown of fruit and vegetables encircled by her guardian animals. In other works, Goya and Velaquez inspired muses, wear hats of trees or dresses of fish tied up in strings of pearls.

Egan presents the possibility of a more gentle relationship with nature, evoking reverence and wonder rather than aggression or confrontation. The paintings reflect a peace that requires no thought, simply the experience with colour merging with something other than self. They address our collective need for freedom and relief from the circumstances of day to day routine and the pressures of an increasingly urban existence.

Wednesday, 5 October 2011

‘Vertically Challenged’ is an emotive exhibition where keen observations of city streetscapes and memories of the southern highlands come together by multi- talented artist, Peter Hickey. The title refers to the realization by the artist that soon after he began working on this show, a recurring theme was presenting itself; many of the works had a vertical orientation in their imagery - vertical lines of tree trunks, fence posts in the landscapes and the elongated shadows produced by the reflections of people and buildings in the cityscapes.

While the country scenes, particualry around Berrima, where the artist resided for 10 years, are all memories; the city works are the result of much walking and visual notetaking, capturing ‘impressions’ of iconic Sydney locations.Looking deeper, this body of work also reflects the artist’s shift, not only physically but mentally, from the tranquility of the country to the buzz of the city.

Still life paintings, aquatint etchings and his much loved animal portraits are included in this exhibition, however the main focus is on his sensitively rendered monochromatic street scenes and landscapes. Peter works in oils and charcoals using a technique in painting known as ‘subtractive’; where after paint has been applied, it is removed with different materials to produce the shapes and tones that provide the imagery.The artist prefers a monotone approach, feeling it gives a more dymnamic effect to his work which would not resonate as much if colour was introduced. In mastering this technique Peter has claimed it as his signature style and having studied Sumie (Japanese Ink Painting) in Japan, he appreciates the Japanese philosophy that ‘less is more’ which is reflected in the minimalist quality of his work.

Saturday, 10 September 2011

Life in the country surrounded by nature and your favourite farmyard animals is surely anyone’s idea of ‘the Good Life’– which Tina Hansen-Jones has used for the title of her solo exhibition at the end of September. Tina’s inspiration comes from her weekly visits to the country to ride her horse ‘Beau’ and sometimes muster cattle or just immerse herself in the rural scene with her furry and fine feathered friends. Unfailingly she would return to her Sydney studio fresh with ideas and eager to portray her favourite characters onto canvas.With her spontaneous brushwork and richly applied oils Tina creates mood and drama in her work – who could defy the commanding look of ‘Jerry’ (pictured above).

Thursday, 1 September 2011

" I love painting flowers, they symbolise sex and feminity, the cycles of life. Viewing them in large scale, you can't deny their fleshiness. You discover intimate details revealed in their full splendour."

Saturday, 13 August 2011

Still life artist Stephanie Têtu is mostly self-taught apart from a short stint at art school in Montreal, which undoubtedly sparked her life-long passion for drawing - especially flowers. Her sell-out show last year demanded that she produce more of the same and this beautiful floral parade with their lyrical dancing shapes and semi-translucent forms won’t disappoint. The artist’s intimate observations are enhanced with careful styling and clever use of strong lighting, which she shares with the viewer, enticing them into the heart of each flower where they succumb to the flower’s beauty. Stephanie has simultaneously created a sense of drama as well as delicacy in her work - a skill that belies her relatively brief career.

By simplifying the forms she creates a timeless nature, Belynda looks to make a distinction between representation and imagination. The blocks of paint, applied to the canvas show a strong sense of light and colour, with soft movement between each layers.

Wednesday, 6 July 2011

Wendy’s highly stylized canvases focus on the feminine aesthetic, a consistently strong element of her work.Bringing control of line, assurance and daring into her exploration of the nude, at times the figures seem barely contained within the confines of the canvas.The influence of Asian culture is also clearly evident with birds and flowers interwoven with gold leaf and overlayed with rich Oriental patterning to create evocative combinations for her nearly nude and demurely concealed ladies. The result is an eclectic mix of the past, our cultural diversity and pop imagery, which transports the viewer to another world of utter beauty and tranquility - where bodies ‘tattooed’ in the most delicate patterns float over the canvas in perfect harmony.

Richard Martin Art

About

Richard Martin Art currently represents a select group of emerging, mid career and established artists specialising in contemporary paintings and sculpture. Here we will showcases their works and other prominent investment artists.